The estate of the legendary comedian George Carlin has reached a settlement with the creators of a podcast who used artificial intelligence to impersonate Mr. Carlin for a comedy special. The settlement, announced on Monday, requires the podcast creators, Will Sasso and Chad Kultgen, to permanently remove the special and never repost it on any platform without approval from the estate.
The lawsuit, filed by Mr. Carlin’s estate in January, alleged that Sasso and Kultgen had infringed on the estate’s copyrights by training an A.I. algorithm on five decades of Mr. Carlin’s work for the special titled “George Carlin: I’m Glad I’m Dead.” The lawsuit also claimed that they had illegally used Mr. Carlin’s name and likeness.
Josh Schiller, a lawyer for Mr. Carlin’s estate, stated that the settlement terms also included an agreement not to use Mr. Carlin’s image, voice, or likeness without approval, though the details of any monetary damages were kept confidential.
In response to the settlement, Kelly Carlin, George Carlin’s daughter, expressed her satisfaction with the resolution and emphasized the need for safeguards against the misuse of A.I. technologies. She hopes that this case serves as a warning about the dangers posed by such technologies.
The comedy special in question, “George Carlin: I’m Glad I’m Dead,” featured an A.I. character named Dudesy impersonating Mr. Carlin. The character claimed to have developed the impersonation by listening to Mr. Carlin’s material and imitating his voice, cadence, and attitude. However, a spokeswoman for Mr. Sasso clarified that Dudesy was a fictional character created by the hosts, not an actual A.I.
The settlement serves as a reminder of the ethical considerations surrounding the use of A.I. technology and the importance of respecting intellectual property rights. It also highlights the need for accountability and safeguards in the development and deployment of A.I. tools.
